Pencil-sharpener.



No. 673,770. Patented May 7, l90l. M. S. FOBTUNATI.

PENCIL SHARPENER.

(Application filed Sept. 6, 1900.)

(No Modei.)

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T ATE r OFFICE.

PENClL-SHARPENER.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 673,770, dated May '7,1901.

Application filed September 6, 1900. Serial No. 29,179. \No model.)

To aZZ whom, it may concern:

Be it known thatI, MICHAEL S. FORTUNATI, a citizen of the United States,and a resident of the city of New York, borough of Brooklyn, in thecounty of Kings and State of New York, have invented a new and ImprovedPencil- Sharpener, of which the following is a full, clear, and exactdescription.

One purpose of the invention is to provide a device for sharpeningpencils in which the blade is so located over a reservoir that theshavings from the pencil will be received in the reservoir; and afurther purpose of the invention is to provide a file or rough surfaceindependent of the sharpener against which the lead may be rubbed toimpart to the pencil a smooth and tapering point.

Another purpose of the invention is to so construct the device that theshavings of the pencil and the particles of the lead removed by the filemay be readily removed from the device when desired, thus preventing thedesk or the article upon which the device is placed from being litteredby the waste of the pencil.

The invention consists in the novel construction and combination of theseveral parts, as will be hereinafter fully set forth, and pointed outin the claim.

Reference is to be had to the accompanying drawings, forming a part ofthis specification, in which similar characters of reference indicatecorresponding parts in all the figures.

Figure 1 is a perspective view of the improved pencilsharpener. Fig. 2is a transverse section taken practically on the line 2 2 of Fig. 1.Fig. 3 is a perspective view of a modified form of the pencil-sharpener.Fig. 4: is a transverse section taken practically on the line 4-4 ofFig. 3, and Fig. 5 is a bottom plan view of a portion of the cover ofthe device shown in Fig. 3.

Referring to Figs. 1 and 2, A represents a casing, which may be of anymaterial, and the upper surface 11 of the said casing is inclined, asshown in Figs. 1 and 2. At the upper portion of the casing a gutter orchannel 10 is formed, in which a pencil may be laid. The upper centralportion of the casing, or that part of the central portion which isadjacent to the gutter, is slightly cut away, as shown at 10 in Figs. 1and 2.

At each side of this cut-away portion 10 horizontal sections 12 adaptedto receive the end portions of a blade 14. This blade extends over theopening or cut-away portion 10 in the upper part of the casing, and theupper edge of the blade is.

tapered to produce a cutting edge, as shown in Fig. 2, so that when apencil is drawn across the blade the wood shaved thereby from the pencilwill find its way into the interior of the casing, since a sufficientspace is provided for this purpose between the cutting edge of the bladeand the depressed or cutaway portion 10 of the casing. The casing A isfurther provided at its bottom portion with an inclined wall 15, asshown in Fig. 2, upon which a file 16 may be secured or a strip ofemery-paper or other material which will sharpen the lead of a pencil. Acover 17 is provided for the casing A, and this cover 17 rests upon thehorizontal sections 12 of the casing and extends downward, stoppingshort.- of the file-surface or emery-paper 16, as is also shown in Fig.2, so that after the wood is shaved from the lead to expose the same thelead may be readily passed over the file or emery-paper and be given asuitable point. The cover 17 is held in position by means of boltsprovided with suitable nuts 14, which bolts may be and preferably areintegral with the cover and extend down through openings in thehorizontal sections 12 of the casing. This cover is provided with arecess 18 at the center of its upper edge, and the upper surface of thecover at its recessed portion 18 is beveled in direction of the blade14, so that the pencil to be sharpened may be readily drawn across thecutting edge of the blade. A bottom 19 is provided for the casing A, andthis bottom 19 is in the form of a small shallow pan and fits into theinterior of the easing, as is shown in Fig. 2, and the pan or bottom isprovided with a lug or handle 20, which is adapted to spring into asuitable opening in the casing and extend beyond the same, so that thepan or bottom may be readily removed by simply pressing down on thehanare formed integral with the casing, extenddle; but while the handleis in engagement with the casing the bottom is held in position even ifthe device be lifted from its support.

In Figs. 3, 4, and 5 I have illustrated a slight deviation from theconstruction shown in Figs. 1 and 2, inasmuch as the casing A consistsof a base 21, side sections 22, and end sections 23, which are eitherattached to or constitute an integral 'portion of the base. This casingA is open at its top and is provided at its upper portion with a coverB. At what may be termed the front upper portion of the casing Ahorizontal ears or lugs 24 are formed, as shown in Figs. 3 and 4, andthe front side is provided with a recess between its ends, formingthereby upwardlyextending lugs 25. These lugs are slight y spaced fromthe end portions 23 of the casing A". The cover consists of sidesections 26, which are pivoted to the lugs 24 of the casing A by meansof suitable forward extensions 27, as is shown best in Fig. 3. Where thedepression or recess is made in the forward side of the casing A, theinner surface 28 of the said side is more or less beveled in a downwarddirection, as shown in Fig. 4, and the construction of the cover iscompleted by a cross-bar 29, which extends from one side section 26 tothe other. This cross-bar is more or less beveled in direction of theforward side of the casing A. Lugs 30 are formed on the under faces ofthe side sections 26 of the cover B, and a blade 31 is placed betweenthese lugs, being held stationary or locked in position by screws 32 ortheir equivalents made to enter the side sections 26 of the cover, as isbest shown in Fig. 5.

The

cutting edge of this blade is beveled and when the cover is closed isparallel with yet slightly removed from the recessed portion of thefront wall of the casing A. This form of the device is completed by theaddition of afile 26, which is located at the rear of the cross-bar 29and is secured by any suitable means to the endsections of the cover B.A space intervenes the rear side edge of this file and the rear side ofthe casing A, which rear side at its upper edge is provided with arecess, as shown in Fig. 5, so that the particles removed from the leadby the use of the file-surface Will fall into the casing A, as willlikewise the shavings removed from the wood of the pencil by the knifeduring the process of sharpening.

It will be readily understood that the pen cil-sharpeuer may beconveniently used asa paper-weight.

Having thus described my invention, I claim as new and desire to secureby Letters Patent- A pencil-sharpener, comprising a receptacle, and ablade secured at the upper portion of the receptacle with its cuttingedge above that of the adjacent vertical wall of the receptacle, thesaid vertical wall of the receptacle being beveled upon that side whichfaces the blade.

In testimony whereof I have signed my name to this specification in thepresence of two subscribing witnesses.

' MICHAEL S. FORTUNATI.

Witnesses:

LEO MCLAUGHLIN, VINCENT P. MCLAUGHLIN.

